PATA makes more meetings

BANGKOK, 19 November 2014: TripAdvisor is the lead partner in a new training venture supported by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) and E-Tourism Frontiers.
It will give travel firms an opportunity to come up to speed on using the latest social media and apps to drill for new business.
Known as DATA (Destination Academy with TripAdvisor), the regional events will draw invited destinations to discuss the growing importance of digital platforms, tools and user-generated content in travel planning.
inside no 2With more and more consumers relying on unedited raw content from ‘fellow travellers’ to plan their trips, it is vital for destinations to understand how this can be incorporated into their marketing strategies.
One of the major challenges facing destinations prepared to use consumer content is verifying the source as credible and content accuracy.
DATA events will include training sessions, guided discussions on best digital practices, as well as analysis and trends from TripAdvisor.
TripAdvisor is using the sessions to present the case for using its own services and building a stronger platform in the travel space to expand its revenue and advertising.
It is working with E-Tourism Frontiers, an online tourism training and education company that sells its services to destinations and travel businesses worldwide offering to improve their use of technology and social content.
PATA is lending its name to the venture, but has limited resources and a long line of MoUs and agreements and commitments to follow through on. Very little follow up information comes out of PATA on how the many projects it signs pan out in the long-term.
The inaugural DATA event will be held in Singapore, 27 and 28 November and TripAdvisor will be partnering with PATA to host 20 regional destination managers for specific training.
Again TripAdvisor is footing the bill and PATA is lending its expertise in selecting the potential list of destination managers to invite.
PATA CEO Mario Hardy said he was delighted that Singapore would host the first DATA event. “We know that travel to Asia has increased significantly in the last few years. According to PATAmPOWER, the Association’s next generation business decision-making tool, international visitor arrivals (IVAs) to Asia grew at an annual growth rate of around 6.9% between 2009 and 2013, with Southeast Asia and South Asia leading the pack with double-digit growth.”
The events will also offer destinations the opportunity to hold DATA events in their home countries to educate and empower their travel trade.

sourced:traveldailynews.asia